BBC News Had a Huge Breakdown Live on Air

BBC News suffered technical difficulties for an excruciating four minutes.

As the longest-running UK news show, BBC News typically runs like a well-oiled machine. However, at 10pm on Tuesday evening viewers were treated to a monumental breakdown live on air, with the show switching through various clips and the image of a sombre Huw Edwards sitting at his desk, lasting for an excruciating four minutes before the issue was rectified.

The breakdown occurred during BBC News’ 10pm slot, with anchor Huw Edwards acknowledging the fault. “Good evening. A few technical problems tonight for which we apologise”, he said, before continuing with the scheduled broadcast.

The footage, which was quickly shared online before making it into YouTube’s top trending videos, soon became a viral hit. Huw Edwards later retweeted a message that said the broadcast was “still better than ITV” despite the technical difficulties.

Viewers commended Edwards’ reaction to the fault, applauding his professional conduct despite the news broadcast’s potentially embarrassing technical faults. One viewer wrote: “He was right on the money when the fault was rectified wasn’t he. What a pro. I was watching it live, it was super chilled and pretty funny. A bit like watching a lava lamp.”